Water Resources to Develop Natural Gas from Shale Plays
Yael Hirsch12/04/2012
GIS in Water Resources
What is Shale Gas?
• Shale Gas: Natural gas trapped within fine-grained sedimentary rocks rich in oil and natural gas called shale formations.
Shale Gas Extraction
Shale Gas Production Drivers
• Natural gas burns clean• 482 trillion cubic feet of shale gas• Creates domestic jobs • Increases our energy security and
independence
Shale Plays in the US
Chattanooga & Floyd Shale Plays
Environmental Concerns ofShale Gas Production
• Produces large amounts of wastewater• Groundwater contamination• Surface contamination• May cause earthquakes!
Black Warrior Basin
Black Warrior Basin
Chattanooga & Floyd Shale Plays
Research
Is there enough water annually to support municipal uses and fracking in the Black Warrior Basin?
Extractable Gas = (w-m)*k
… where:w = total water availabilitym = municipal water usagek = amount of shale gas extracted per m3 of water required
Future Work• Include water usage of other industries in model
Step 1: Determine Water Availability
Water Availability = Precipitation – Evapotranspiration
(Gauge data obtained from NOAA National Climatic Data Center)
Step 1: Determine Water Availability
Step 1: Determine Water AvailabilityAnnual Precipitation = 6.28 km3
Water Availability = Precipitation – Evapotranspiration
???
World Available Water Map Service
(Map layer obtained from Daniel Siegal on ArcGIS online)
Step 2: Municipal Water Usage
(Population data obtained at census.gov)
Annual Municipal Water Reqs= (Population)(ave water usage/person-day)(365 days/year)55 trillion gallons of water per year = (1.5 million)(100 gallons/person-day)(365 days/year)
Step 3: Population Density
Birmingham
Tuscaloosa
Step 4: Gas per Water
1812 m3 gas/1 m3 H20
Lessons Learned & Future Work
• Lessons Learned– Shale gas data and groundwater data are very
hard to find!
• Future Work– Import raster data set for World Water Availability
to determine water availability of the region– Add agriculture water requirements to formula– Apply strategy to other prospective shale regions
Acknowledgements
• Dr. Maidment• Gonzalo Espinoza
Thanks!!
Step 3: Population Density
BirminghamTuscaloosa
Step 5: Amount of Shale Gas
2.34 trillion m3 gas in the Black Warrior Basin